Very traditional style hotel. Staff were very nice, I've never been sat down for check in before. They offer a welcome drink while explaining the experience with a lot of local recommendations in English. The rooms are huge, with very comfortable futon sleeping arrangements. There's tea and a sizable shower with separate toilet space and high quality toiletries included. The public onsen was great, with tattoos allowed! Which was really lovely because I'm covered in large tattoos and it felt nice to be included.

Bit noisy from other guests moving things around, especially early in the morning and late at night.

We splurged for the private onsen room and it was an absolute treat! The staff were extremely attentive and delightful to be around. Plenty of space with a nice blend of traditional Japanese features and western bed. Two pillows each (seemingly a luxury in Japan!) plus a massage chair and ample toiletries too. Of course the star of the room was the onsen overlooking mountain peaks. What a great way to end those 20000 step days! Highly recommend including dinner and breakfast as well. We had a private dining room for dinner and a breakfast, with different menus every day. PS try the apple juice if it’s available; it’s the best we’ve ever tasted.

We stayed in Hotel Tsubakino in early March. The hotel staff was very friendly and helpful. We had reserved a teppan dinner the first night. The food was beautifully prepared and tasty. The breakfasts were equally impressive. The staff willingly accommodated one of our party's gluten/dairy free needs. We highly recommend reserving dinner here - you will not be disappointed. The other highlight of our stay was the baths. There were both indoor and outdoor baths for guest use. We were able to sit outside in the hot bath while it was snowing. That was perfection! The location is as described: a three minute walk from Yudanaka Station. It also is about a 30 minute drive to the Jigokudani Monkey Park. We took a cab one way and walked back from the park through the Shibu Onsen area back to Yudanaka through old world narrow streets with many bathhouses.

Staff: The staff at Tsubakino are incredible. We were running late due to us misreading the train timetable, they kindly messaged us and told us where to get off and had a driver pick us up in order to make it in time for dinner (Thank you very much). Food: We opted for the stay that included dinner, and it was 100% worth it. Dinner and breakfast were both multi-course meals that were absolutely delicious, would highly recommend paying for it. Location: 5 min walk from the train station that would take you to Nagano. The bus heading to the snow monkey park also left from that location. Room: We had a traditional tatami room with futon. We found it very comfortable. Onsen: There is an indoor and outdoor onsen that was great! This was my first experience in a public onsen, but the provided instructions made it pretty easy to follow.

Honestly I can't think of anything that we disliked. (Except I wish we would've stayed for more than a day)

Fantastic place to stay and enjoy the area. We loved the traditional Japanese room, wearing the Yukatas provided and we used the onsen baths in the evenings after dinner. The food was all amazing (make sure to tell them of there is anything that you don’t eat before you arrive as they will just bring you food with no options on the day). The location is also great with easy walk to the bus/train station.

Nothing

We stayed at this hotel after visiting the “Jigokudani Monkey park”. The location of this hotel may be complicated to find. With the Google map and mapcode, we cannot find the way to enter until we had to stop and asked the local people to show us the right way. Anyway, the hotel is cozy and warm welcome. Welcome drink impressed us a lot. Dinner at the hotel is very good. You will have the “Shinshu” beef steak in the menu which tasted superb. Onsen is located on the top floor of the building. With the wide windows, you will see the panoramic view of the Snowy Mountains in Nagano while relaxing in the onsen.

The room was very spacious that came with a living room (tatami floor), 2 bathrooms, 2 separate toilet rooms, a queen bed, a massage chair, a sauna and a private onsen with an amazing view. When we arrived they brought us to a waiting room and served us a complimentary drink; we opted for their homemade apple juice made from apples from their own homegrown apple farm which was such a delight. The check-in process was quick, although the staff had limited English capabilities it was good enough for basic communication. The location was just a 3 minute walk from Yudanaka Station and easy to find. This was super convenient for us as there is a bus from the station that can take you to the Snow Monkey Park (The journey from station to park took 15 minutes and a ticket was ¥260.) Our booking at the hotel also came with breakfast and dinner; they were very considerate and accomodating with our specific requests (Vegetarian and No Alcohol). The food was delicious and filling.

The only issue we had with the hotel was just the high price. Although you can argue it was somewhat justified if you take into account of the facilities and services they provided. Also, one of the toilets' bidet didn't work and smelled but that was fine as the other toilet worked well.

The room is very spacious. The futon was warm and comfortable. The yukata was very cute. I love the hot water kettle in the room and also their set of green tea. The service of the staff was top -notch. They not only cleaned and tidy up the room, they even change the teapot and refill the hot water inside the kettle for us. The breakfasts were very good. The outdoor private onsen was very nice and I think it helped me to sleep well that night.

Nothing I dont like. I just wish that the pillow was abit softer. Or they provide a soft pillows along side with their normal ones.

1/ easy to contact by messages. Very reactive. 2/ WE were transported by car from the station (200m walk) very convenient when you have many luggages. 3/ you feel special from the start to the finish. The personnel were very classy, helpful, polite. 4/ We had the suite with the private onsen. It was a surprise to discover also a private sauna and massage chair. The luxuary in that room is incredible. Worth every yen (and we are not the kind of people that spend much on hotels, it was a luxuary that we granted ourselves for a special occasion and it made it very special) 5/ the breakfast Is top class japanese cuisine 6/ i recommand getting thé dinner (full kaiseki course). Master class delights. We had a proper private dining room for ourselves (i think included with the suit). 7/ the private onsen... Excellent with a good view. 8/ yudanaka IS a very nice village

Nothing. Absolutely perfect

Hotel Tsubakino was like a blast from the and past and offered excellent traditional hospitality. The facilities had vintage appeal and have been maintained with care. The staff were gracious and welcoming, they even offered us a shuttle to the train station which is less than 100 meters away - with heavy suitcases and lots of snow it was very much appreciated. The included breakfast was delicious and prepared with care and attention to detail. I hope we can visit again some day. A very convenient location to visit the Snow Monkey Park.